PubMed · 2026-05-19
A review maps how the WUS/WOX gene family acts as the master control system for stem cells in forest trees — governing wood formation, regeneration, and stress responses. Unlocking these genes with CRISPR could finally make tree breeding as fast and precise as crop improvement.
The WOX4 gene maintains the identity of wood-producing cambial cells and actively prevents them from turning prematurely into xylem (structural wood), revealing a distinct control circuit unique to woody plants.
Conifers and other gymnosperms carry 'transitional' WUS genes that fill an evolutionary gap, showing how the stem-cell regulatory system in modern flowering trees evolved from more ancient forms.
WUS-derived peptides can overcome the stubborn regeneration barrier in forest trees — the long-standing bottleneck that has made genetic transformation of most tree species impractical.